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400,000 gallons of radioactive water leaked from US nuclear power plant

About 400,000 gallons of radioactive water has leaked from a nuclear power plant in Monticello, the midwestern US state of Minnesota, regulators revealed recently

US President Joe Biden to host PM Modi for state dinner this summer

US President Joe Biden plans to host Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi for a state dinner this summer, people familiar with the matter said, reported Bloomberg.The White House aims for the state dinner to take place in June but the timing could slip. However, a spokesman for the National Security Council declined to comment, reported Bloomberg.PM Modi's formal state visit is a sign of the deepening US-India relationship in various fields including defence, technology, space exploration, trade and investments.Moreover, the Biden administration advances policies and initiatives for a free and open Indo-Pacific to counter what it sees as a growing threat posed by China and India plays a key role in it.India is hosting the Group of 20 (G20) leaders summit in New Delhi in September, where Russia's invasion of Ukraine will be among the chief topics of discussion. It's unclear whether Russian President Vladimir Putin will attend the gathering, reported Bloomberg.Biden is also expected to ..

Delhi Capitals co-owners GMR group to run Major League Cricket franchise

The GMR Group (co-owners of Delhi Capitals) and Microsoft chairman & CEO Satya Nadella and GMR Group led consortium have bagged the rights to own and operate a team in Major League Cricket (MLC), a new T20 franchise league in the USA, which is scheduled to be launched this July.

Pentagon releases footage of Russian aircraft dumping fuel on US drone

The Pentagon has released footage of what it says is a Russian aircraft conducting an unsafe intercept of a US Air Force surveillance drone in international airspace over the Black Sea. The 42-second video, released Thursday, shows a Russian Su-27 approaching the back of the MQ-9 drone and beginning to release fuel as it passes, the Pentagon said. The US military said it ditched the MQ-9 Reaper in the sea Tuesday after the Russian fighter jet poured fuel on the unmanned aerial vehicle and then struck its propeller. Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin and Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. Mark Milley have spoken to their Russian counterparts about the destruction of the US drone following the encounter with Russian fighter jets. The calls with Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu and Chief of Russian General Staff Gen. Valery Gerasimov on Wednesday were the first since October. While intercept attempts are not uncommon, the incident amid the war in Ukraine has raised concerns it cou

Russian fighter jet collides with US drone amid tensions over Ukraine war

According to reports, the drone was on a routine mission in international airspace when two Russian jets tried to intercept it

SVB fallout: US admin's statement positive outcome, says Nazara Tech CEO

Nazara Tech, whose two step-down subsidiaries have Rs 64 crore deposits in Silicon Valley Bank, on Monday said the US administration's statements on protecting depositors for the entire amount is a "positive outcome" and gives confidence about the recovery of money. The two subsidiaries have working capital to meet their requirements, including payroll, Nitish Mittersain, Founder and CEO of Nazara Technologies said as he categorically ruled out the possibility of layoffs within the company as a result of the Silicon Valley Bank crisis. In fact, the current environment yields "many opportunities", and Nazara Tech intends to double down on its efforts to look for "good companies to acquire and invest" given the attractive valuations. "The statement by Yellen (Treasury Secretary Janet L. Yellen) saying all depositors will be protected for the entire amount, is a very positive outcome and makes us more confident that we will recover all of this money," Mittersain told PTI. On Friday, t

Startups hoping for quick resolution of SVB crisis post FDIC intervention

The joint statement from the US Treasury, Federal Reserve and Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) stating that depositors will have access to all of their money starting Monday, March 13 in connection with the Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) collapse has come as a relief to the startups who were exposed to the bank. Startups hope the crisis would now be resolved soon. "FDIC's communication yesterday saying all depositors will get access to their funds is a relief to the startup community, said Prabhu Ramachandran, CEO & Co-founder at Facilio, a property operations software provider. Facilio has significant exposure, as a major portion of the company's funds is with SVB. "But we expect the crisis to be resolved this week and we should get access to our funds. We have money outside SVB to cover 4-5 months of our operations. This gives us more than sufficient time for the crisis to be resolved, and for us to access our funds at SVB," Ramachandran said He added "while most SaaS

SVB chief pressed US lawmakers to weaken bank risk scrutiny 8 years ago

Eight years before the second-largest bank failure in American history occurred this week, the bank's president personally pressed Congress to reduce scrutiny of his financial institution

Telehealth startup Cerebral shares data of 3.1 mn patients with advertisers

US-based telehealth startup Cerebral has disclosed that it shared the private health information, including mental health assessments, of more than 3.1 mn patients in country

US commerce secretary Gina Raimondo had 'fruitful meeting' with PM Modi

US Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo had a "fruitful meeting" with Prime Minister Narendra Modi here. The meeting took place on Friday, the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) said. Raimondo, who was on a four-day visit to India, also met several ministers besides holding meetings with Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal. Raimondo and Goyal also held the Commercial Dialogue on Friday. "US Secretary of Commerce @SecRaimondo had a fruitful meeting with PM @narendramodi yesterday," the PMO tweeted Saturday along with a photograph of the meeting.

India, US sign MoU to build resilient supply chain in semiconductor sector

India and the US on Friday inked an initial pact on increasing private sector cooperation in the area of semiconductors under which the two countries would facilitate business opportunities and develop an ecosystem with a view to reduce their dependency on China and Taiwan. The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on establishing semiconductor supply chain and innovation partnership under the framework of IndiaUS Commercial Dialogue was signed by US Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo and Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal during the Commercial Dialogue here. According to a joint statement, both sides have agreed to set up a semiconductor sub-committee, led by the Department of Commerce for the US side and the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) and Ministry of Commerce and Industry for the Indian side. The committee will convene its first engagement in mid-year to review recommendations from the joint industry-led task force launched in connection with

We see India as trusted technology partner: US Commerce Secy Gina Raimondo

America sees India as a trusted technology partner, and it wants to deepen this technological relationship between the two countries, US Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo said on Friday. The Indian government has taken several steps in the last couple of years, which makes India an even more attractive place to do business, she added. Steps like promoting the digital economy and zero tolerance for corruption make India a more attractive partner, Raimondo told reporters here. She was addressing a joint media briefing with Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal after concluding the fifth IndiaUSA Commercial Dialogue, which was held after a gap of three years. "We see India as a trusted technology partner, and we want to continue to deepen our technological relationship with India...We hope to work more closely with India and the private sector here around those technologies," she said. Besides semiconductor, she said areas, where both countries can increase cooperation, inclu

89% companies hired foreign nationals laid off in US, finds survey

The finding of the survey indicate that many companies benefited by recruiting foreign talent that faced layoffs

From Kailasa to Kalakuta Republic: Micronations that amused the world

Micronations generally claim a territory, usually a piece of personal property or an uninhabitable tract of land

Sitharaman meets US Comm secy; discuss cooperation for trade, investment

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Thursday met US Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo to discuss India's G20 priorities and bilateral cooperation to further boost investment and trade. In a tweet, the Finance Ministry said Sitharaman and Raimondo also appreciated the substantial and multi-faceted India-US relations which are centred on strong economic and financial engagements. Raimondo is here for the India-US Commercial Dialogue and India-US CEO Forum meet on March 10 to discuss cooperation in various sectors that could unlock new trade and investment opportunities between the two countries. The two leaders also discussed India's G20 priorities and other issues of mutual interest. "During their deliberations, FM Smt. @nsitharaman and Secretary Ms. @SecRaimondo also exchanged views on enhancing #bilateral cooperation to further boost #investment and #trade in mutually agreed areas," the ministry tweeted. In a separate tweet, the ministry said Mastercard CEO Michael Miebach too

US Commerce secy Gina Raimondo to arrive in India today on 4-day visit

US Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo will arrive in New Delhi on Tuesday on a four-day visit to the country, during which she will participate in the US-India Commercial Dialogue and CEO Forum

IndiGo to enable codeshare connectivity to US, Canada with Turkish Airlines

IndiGo on Sunday said it is looking at enabling codeshare connectivity to the US and Canada through its partnership with Turkish Airlines. On Friday, a senior official told PTI that the airline has received approval from the civil aviation ministry to wet lease up to two planes for operating flights to the United States and Canada. In response to queries on the same, IndiGo on Sunday said it constantly evaluates and discusses opportunities with aircraft manufacturers, but at this stage, it is pure speculation. "At present, our objective is to enable codeshare connectivity to the US and Canada via our partnership with Turkish Airlines after the required application and approval process," the statement said. Codesharing allows an airline to book its passengers on its partner carriers and provide seamless travel to destinations where it has no presence. The airline's plans also come against the backdrop of Air India starting to ramp up its international operations and expanding fleet

Indo-US strategic allies hold up Sri Lanka's struggling politics, economy

India and the United states have been strengthening their strategic partnership to assist Sri Lanka's political and economic stability.The US Senate Foreign Relations Committee expressed concern about the postponement of Local Government (LG) elections in light of Sri Lankan President Ranil Wickremesinghe's declaration that there are insufficient funds to hold local government elections and his assumption of office to lead the nation in rescuing Sri Lanka from its severe economic crisis without holding elections, Mawrata News reported.The US Senate Foreign Relations Committee criticised the postponement of the local government elections in Sri Lanka, which is igniting public anger. According to them, any effort to muffle the voice of the Sri Lankan people is categorically undemocratic and a flagrant violation of their rights. They suggested having democratic municipal elections straight away.With a focus on boosting security and fostering economic growth, India and the US have ...

Ericsson to pay $206 million for breaking US deal in bribery case

Swedish telecom equipment maker Ericsson has agreed to plead guilty to US foreign corruption violations and pay more than USD 206 million for breaking a deal with the Justice Department over charges of bribery and falsifying records in countries from China to Kuwait. The US Justice Department said the company, based in Stockholm, violated a 2019 agreement by failing to provide documents and information the agency needed for its investigation and to bring charges against individuals accused of misconduct. Ericsson, which provides equipment for high-speed 5G wireless networks, used intermediaries to bribe government officials and manage illicit stashes of cash in Djibouti, China, Vietnam, Indonesia and Kuwait, prosecutors say. The company's breach of its obligations ... indicate that Ericsson did not learn its lesson, and it is now facing a steep price for its continued missteps," US Attorney Damian Williams for the Southern District of New York said in a prepared statement on ...

India slips to 43rd rank in US intellectual property rights index

India has slipped to the 43rd spot in the US Chamber of Commerce's latest International Intellectual Property Rights index